Car insurance nonsense (or story Vs Lambeth Parking)

[story]

Oh my god what a drag….

So some friends are going overseas for several months and they’d like me to have their car while their away rather than SORNing it.

They live and work in Sheffield. Their insurance broker company person address whatever is based in Devon.

They got me into their insurance for about £100.

All good.

BUT…

In order to use the car, I need a parking permit for my address here in Brixton.

In order to have a parking permit, Lambeth insists that the insurance must be registered to my Brixton address. No exceptions.

Devon based insurance immediately goes up to £1,400

I spoke to my old insurance firm (Privilege) and asked them to restart my policy, which I stopped when I got rid of my non-ULEZ car 18 months ago.

It was treated as a new quote, and immediately declined, with no reason given.

They advised me to try the comparison websites, so I went to MoneySuperMarket.

Admiral are offering me insurance for £532, which isn’t too bad, considering. (I didn’t admit I’d had an insurance quote declined a mere 10 minutes previously….)


My questions:

Does anyone have a bright idea about how to sidestep Lambeth’s insistence on having the insurance tied to the Brixton address?

Any idea why my application was declined? Was it because under “Who is the owner?“ I had to answer “Other” because there’s no option for “close and trusted friend of many years standing”.

Any bright ideas in the Urban hive mind for anything I’ve missed or overlooked?


Thanks Urban.. x



NB
Yes, I’ve tried phoning them and talked to a real person.

 

[Griff]

What's having a parking permit got to do with the insurance if you're on the insurance of the registered owner?

If they drove to London and parked up somewhere, it would be just the same as you parking it in Brixton surely?

Have you called them and asked to speak to somebody rather than 'filling in an online form'?

It makes no sense, you are insured regardless of where the car is registered.

Very odd.

 

[Elpenor]

Presumably it’s to ensure only vehicles registered to and insured by residents can have a permit.

Feels a bit computer says no.

 

[story]

It’s totally computer says no.

I tried to get them to explain why the insurance is irrevocable connected to the parking and I don’t think the person on the phone knew what the actual reason is. It just is.

 

[story]

What's having a parking permit got to do with the insurance if you're on the insurance of the registered owner?

If they drove to London and parked up somewhere, it would be just the same as you parking it in Brixton surely?

Have you called them and asked to speak to somebody rather than 'filling in an online form'?

It makes no sense, you are insured regardless of where the car is registered.

Very odd.

Yes. I looked online , saw the criterion, and phoned them today. Hence this thread.







(I’ve already tried taking it into a police station….)

 

[story]

Presumably it’s to ensure only vehicles registered to and insured by residents can have a permit.

Feels a bit computer says no.

After saying “I don’t get why they’re so connected” in about four different ways, I said “sounds like you’re in cahoots with the insurance people”, which still didn’t prompt any real reason.




but I’m quite pleased I got the chance to use the word cahoots

 

[Magnus McGinty]

Presumably it’s to ensure only vehicles registered to and insured by residents can have a permit.

Feels a bit computer says no.

Yeah, I was thinking it’s to prevent residents getting a permit based on address only in order to rent it out privately.

 

[kalidarkone]

I had my car insurance declined just because crime is up in my area since its been gentrified.

I had to ring around.

 

[story]

I had my car insurance declined just because crime is up in my area since its been gentrified.

I had to ring around.

FFS

It’s not as if they‘re on a losing wicket with car insurance tho anyway ffs.

wankers

 

[dessiato]

Having a Spanish licence I've found it difficult to get quotes except through comparethemarket.com They ask whether I have a British or European licence which then asks which country it's from. Go compare doesn't offer this option.

 

[story]

Yeah, I was thinking it’s to prevent residents getting a permit based on address only in order to rent it out privately.

The parking place?

I‘ve never understood why this is considered a problem. If I live here, I get a parking place. Why shouldn‘t I share it/rent it? If I had a car, I’d be using it.


On the other hand, I don’t understand why I’m allowed to turn my front garden into a parking place, get the council to drop the curb, which then makes that dropped curb unavailable for any parking ever under any circumstances. If I use my front garden (with all the attendant knock on flooding issues) I get free parking, lower insurance, and it removes a legitimate parking spot from the street.

Why’s that alright but I can’t use “my“ parking spot as I choose.

wankers.

 

[story]

Having a Spanish licence I've found it difficult to get quotes except through comparethemarket.com They ask whether I have a British or European licence which then asks which country it's from. Go compare doesn't offer this option.

I should probably try all the different comparison sites.

Theres clearly a niche for an app or website that compares all the comparison sites.

 

[Elpenor]

The parking place?

I‘ve never understood why this is considered a problem. If I live here, I get a parking place. Why shouldn‘t I share it/rent it? If I had a car, I’d be using it.


On the other hand, I don’t understand why I’m allowed to turn my front garden into a parking place, get the council to drop the curb, which then makes that dropped curb unavailable for any parking ever under any circumstances. If I use my front garden (with all the attendant knock on flooding issues) I get free parking, lower insurance, and it removes a legitimate parking spot from the street.

Why’s that alright but I can’t use “my“ parking spot as I choose.

wankers.

I suppose the rationale is that if the permit is used by a vehicle other than your one (ie if it’s a permit for your address not your vehicle) then that’s potential lost revenue from council car parks / parking meters

Doesn’t help you though

 

[story]

Harvesting money.
grinding bones to make bread

 

[story]

Fucking wankers the lot of them

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

or you could get the car registered in your name, but this will also change the cost of the original insurance.
Technically you would also be required to tell the insurance that the vehicle will be kept in londn near your address also bumping the price up.
So yeah, not good.

I guess the reason would be to make sure you are not getting a permit for a commuter to come and park their car here.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I had my car insurance declined just because crime is up in my area since its been gentrified.

I had to ring around.

the twunts

and many will ask if you've been declined insurance when you ask them for a quote.

some insurers do at least have the decency to give you a stupidly high quote to tell you to sod off rather that decline...

 

[MickiQ]

The parking place?

I‘ve never understood why this is considered a problem. If I live here, I get a parking place. Why shouldn‘t I share it/rent it? If I had a car, I’d be using it.


On the other hand, I don’t understand why I’m allowed to turn my front garden into a parking place, get the council to drop the curb, which then makes that dropped curb unavailable for any parking ever under any circumstances. If I use my front garden (with all the attendant knock on flooding issues) I get free parking, lower insurance, and it removes a legitimate parking spot from the street.

Why’s that alright but I can’t use “my“ parking spot as I choose.

wankers.

Well it's not actually 'your' parking space it's the public highway and the council has the authority to grant or deny access to it as they see fit. I'm surprised that certain anti-car urbs have not yet made this point already, they usually jump on any chance to denigrate people using cars especially parking. Your front garden is your property and you can do what you want with it. The council doesn't drop the kerb by the way it grants (or refuses) permission to do so. It cost me £2K to drop the kerb outside my house including the fee.
As for why the council insists on your insurance (and I suspect the V5 as well) registered to your address is probably as some Urbs have said to stop people getting parking permits and then earning money renting out what is actually a public asset ie the road.

 

[WouldBe]

As for why the council insists on your insurance (and I suspect the V5 as well) registered to your address is probably as some Urbs have said to stop people getting parking permits and then earning money renting out what is actually a public asset ie the road.

As the parking place is in London and the car presumably registered in Sheffield it's unlikely that the space is being rented to someone commuting from Sheffield each day. The council must be able to check that.

 

[Santino]

Whether deliberate or not, someone has also invented a way to stop people who live in London from pretending to live in Sheffield for cheap car insurance.

 

[story]

Well it's not actually 'your' parking space it's the public highway and the council has the authority to grant or deny access to it as they see fit. I'm surprised that certain anti-car urbs have not yet made this point already, they usually jump on any chance to denigrate people using cars especially parking. Your front garden is your property and you can do what you want with it. The council doesn't drop the kerb by the way it grants (or refuses) permission to do so. It cost me £2K to drop the kerb outside my house including the fee.
As for why the council insists on your insurance (and I suspect the V5 as well) registered to your address is probably as some Urbs have said to stop people getting parking permits and then earning money renting out what is actually a public asset ie the road.

Yes, that’s why I used the “ “ things around the word my .


And when I said whatever I said about dropping the curb, of course I didn’t mean that people physically themselves get down on their knees and do the work of dropping the curb, any more than when I say “My dad built his house” I mean that he physically built his own house. It’s a euphemism, or code, for “I was the one who planned, paid for, managed the running of the project, organised …. so that the curb was dropped outside my house /my house got built by skilled labour”.

Whether it’s the council who do it or allow it or licence it or give permission is irrelevant to my point. Which is that the dropped curb means there’s no longer a parking place there at all. And after whatever it costs to get the permission etc, there’s no money going to the council.So how come it’s okay for a homeowner to take a whole parking place out of existence, but it’s not okay for a homeowner who doesn’t have ownership of a specific car to use a parking place that they do have a right to use?




In the olden days when I had more money, more vigour, and more time, I wrote to the council complaining about this issue. Why am I unable to use my right to park for any car I park outside my house? Rental car, borrowed car, company car, friend‘s car, and these days, Zip car.

Obviously it’s a money harvesting thing.
The outcome is that it penalises people like me who like not owning a car, but sometimes have the use of a car for ,long periods of time.

When I’ve owned a car, I’ve bought and paid for my permit without any complaint. Whenever I’ve not owned a car but had the use of a car, I’ve run up against this stupid problem.

 

[story]

Has your dropped curb made it impossible for a ca to park in your street MickiQ ?

I live in London. It seems absurd to me that anyone in London is allowed to both pave over their front yard (thus reducing green space and increasing flooding potential) and evaporate a previously existing parking place.

 

[MickiQ]

Has your dropped curb made it impossible for a ca to park in your street MickiQ ?

I live in London. It seems absurd to me that anyone in London is allowed to both pave over their front yard (thus reducing green space and increasing flooding potential) and evaporate a previously existing parking place.

No but we all have drives anyway, again considering I've had a similar argument with certain Urbs but taking your position it feels odd to take yhis position but there isn't a parking space outside your house there is simply the road. I would imagine that parking in London is a source of much contention.

Whether deliberate or not, someone has also invented a way to stop people who live in London from pretending to live in Sheffield for cheap car insurance.

I rather doubt the traffic wardens check registration numbers they most likely just look for a valid permit. They would have no idea where the car is registered.

 

[Santino]

I rather doubt the traffic wardens check registration numbers they most likely just look for a valid permit. They would have no idea where the car is registered.

They don't have to, because it seems the Council is preventing people with cars registered elsewhere from having permits.

 

[WouldBe]

It seems absurd to me that anyone in London is allowed to both pave over their front yard (thus reducing green space and increasing flooding potential)

There are ways of making parking places that don't affect flooding potential.

and evaporate a previously existing parking place.

If the council want to be that stupid then that's their fault.

 

[story]

There are ways of making parking places that don't affect flooding potential.

If the council want to be that stupid then that's their fault.

I highly doubt that most of the people who pave over their front gardens and therefore have repleaced the sight of a garden with a view of their car through their window give much of a shiny shit about the environment. So unless it’s legally required, I can’t see them doing anything other than whatever is cheap and quick.


The stupidity of the council may well be their own fault, in any number of issues from traffic regulations to tree policies, but it all impacts on the poor sods down here on the treadmills.

 

[hash tag]

Is a parking permit essential. You say it's going to cost you over £500 for a few months insurance. Is it not possible you could rent a nearby space or garage for less?And not worry about insurance from your address

Apply to rent a garage

We manage lock-up garages across the borough. Apply below to rent a garage.

www.lambeth.gov.uk

 

[kalmatthew]

I highly doubt that most of the people who pave over their front gardens and therefore have repleaced the sight of a garden with a view of their car through their window give much of a shiny shit about the environment. So unless it’s legally required, I can’t see them doing anything other than whatever is cheap and quick.


The stupidity of the council may well be their own fault, in any number of issues from traffic regulations to tree policies, but it all impacts on the poor sods down here on the treadmills.

Unless they get planning permission rather than building it under permitted development it is a requirement. Anything over 5m² must be water permeable

 

[MickiQ]

They don't have to, because it seems the Council is preventing people with cars registered elsewhere from having permits.

Their plan is working then, local democracy in action.

 

[MickiQ]

TBF I think the OP is being unfair on herself on thinking that her paving over her front lawn is going to have any detrimental effect on preventing flooding in the local area. The failure of the local water companies to properly invest in drainage so they can use the money for shareholder dividends probably contributes a lot more to flooding than paving over a few square meters or even lots of people paving over a few square meters. After all one of the secondary effects of a dropped kerb is providing a means for water to run off into the gutter and thus the drains.
However it does seem ato be a lot of expense to go to in order to borrow someone's car for a few months.